 By Staff
August 20th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The Halton Regional Police Service has concluded a two week drug trafficking investigation in the City of Burlington. The investigation by the 3 District – Street Crime Unit has led to charges against the following individual;
Brandon STODDARD (32 years old from Burlington)
Trafficking (Fentanyl)
Possession for the Purpose of Trafficking (Fentanyl)
Possession of a Controlled Substance (Codeine)
Possession of a Weapon for a Dangerous Purpose
Breach of Release Order (2 Counts)
On August 19th 2020, Investigators with the assistance of the Tactical Rescue Unit and K9 executed a search warrant at a residence in the City of Burlington. As a result; the following items were seized:
 5 grams of Purple Fentanyl
100 ml of Codeine
2 Digital Scales
5 Cellular Telephones
12 inch Knife
$380.00 Canadian Currency
$11,150 worth of drugs was seized as a result of the search warrant. (Photo attached).
STODDARD was held for a Bail Hearing on August 20th, 2020.
Anyone with information in regards to this investigation is asked to contact Detective Constable Cole Richards of the 3 District Street Crime Unit at 905-825-4747 ext. 2345.
Tips can also be submitted anonymously to Crime Stoppers. “See something? Hear something? Know something? Contact Crime Stoppers” at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or through the web at www.haltoncrimestoppers.ca.
People charged with a criminal offence are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
 By Pepper Parr
August 20th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
It was a grand idea, brilliant perhaps, but it is in trouble now. The possible failure of Nuvo One on the North Service Road was declared in the financial press this morning.
 It was a bold, brilliant idea that floundered under too much debt. The development, a multi-use, multi-tenant operation, was floundering financially long before COVID-19 hit the world in March. A major lender attempted to put the company in default over the failure to meet a mortgage obligation.
The largest creditor is Meridian Credit Union.
The company filed for Company Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) protection and is now carrying out a parallel process to solicit interest in the acquisition of the property or providing re-financing to the company.
A bold redevelopment of the property began in 2018 when Shawn Saulnier and his wife Bridget bought the property from the David Mainse Estate.
The site was then known as Crossroads where the two television studios were used to broadcast the 100 Huntley Street television series.
The two chapels on the ground floor were replaced by a bold design that had to be put on hold when the contractors walked off the job due to non-payment of their invoices.
The site is now the office location of a number of organizations including Sound of Music and Burlington Green.
 By Pepper Parr
August 20th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
How much damage was there?
 The Region is now in Stage 3 of the State of Emergency. All kinds of commercial activity was opened up to help Halton Region and local municipalities understand how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected businesses; Halton has put together a short 10-minute survey for local business owners and operators.
This joint survey is being conducted by Halton Region Economic Development, in partnership with the Burlington Economic Development Corporation (BEDC), and the Economic Development Divisions of the Towns of Halton Hills, Milton and Oakville.
Your input is valuable. The survey results will be shared with Halton Region and the local municipalities to inform how we can support businesses and help our local economy recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
How long will the survey take?
We understand that your time is valuable! The survey should take less than 10 minutes.
Who should complete the survey?
We are looking for feedback from business owners, operators or management executives with knowledge of the organization’s operations and forecasts.
Take the survey – CLICK HERE
Survey Deadline
Please complete the survey by Friday, August 28, 2020.
Please note that this is a one-time business survey on how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected businesses in Halton. It does not replace Halton Region’s annual Employment Survey, which will start in September 2020.
By Pepper Parr
August 19th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
What do parents think they want to do about sending their kids back to school in September?
The Halton District School Board has been in session since 1:00 pm today – they expect to be there until at least 7:30 pm.
A table that was presented a few minutes ago suggests where some of the parents are:
 The numbers total 40,872 students; the Board reports that there are 65,000 students in classrooms enrolled in the Halton District School Board
Is someone sending out for pizza?
 By Staff
August 19, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The Halton District School Board is thinking very seriously about Outdoor Learning for as many schools as possible.
 Is this what they are thinking about? They aren’t talking about just the nice Indian Summer weather we get.
Trustees have asked for a report on what can be done and what might the cost be.
There is $200,000 in the kitty for this type of thing along with some COVID-19 specific funding.
Will the mitts the kids have to wear be covered in that funding?
Report will be ready for late September.
All the trustees were on for this.
By Pepper Parr
August 19th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Most of the reports listed below can be reached by clicking on the link.
The “Taking a Closer Look at the Downtown” (Scoped Re-examination of the Adopted Official Plan) is a document-heavy process.
To get a sense as to just how document-heavy it has been – and it isn’t over yet – gaze at the documents listed below.
 That Closer Look amounts to a big pile of paper The project team has released recommended modifications to the downtown policies in the Adopted Official Plan. These policies will guide development in downtown Burlington to the year 2031. The recommended modifications and associated reports are linked below.
The meat of it all is in the first document – not actually in the document itself – it’s in one of the Appendices.
The recommended modifications are discussed in staff report PL-16-20 and in Appendix 1 of PL-16-20, SGL Planning & Design Final Report.
The Official Plan recommended modifications themselves are contained in Appendices 2, 3, and 4 of report PL-16-20.
Appendices 5-14 of report PL-16-20 contain technical studies that have been completed in support of the Re-examination of the Adopted Official Plan.
- PL-16-20 Appendix 5: Stage 1 Archaeological Assessment: Revised Report (Prepared by ASI, Feb 19, 2019)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 6: Cultural Heritage Resource Assessment: Built Heritage Resources and Cultural Heritage Landscapes Downtown Mobility Hub Study Area (Prepared by ASI, May 2019, revised September 2019)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 7: Downtown Burlington Mobility Hub Market Analysis (prepared by N. Barry Lyons and Associates, August 2017)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 8: Downtown Burlington Mobility Hub – Illustrative Economic Analysis (prepared by N. Barry Lyons and Associates, July 2019)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 9: Scoped Environmental Impact Study Downtown Mobility Hub (Prepared by Dillon Consulting, October 2019)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 10(A-1): Flood Hazard and Scoped Stormwater Management Assessment (Prepared by Wood Environment and Infrastructure Solutions Wood, June 1, 2020)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 10(A-2): Flood Hazard and Scoped Stormwater Management Assessment – Drawings (Prepared by Wood Environment and Infrastructure Solutions Wood, June 1, 2020)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 10(B-1): Hager-Rambo Flood Control Facilities Study Report: Downtown and Burlington GO Mobility Hub (Prepared by Wood Environment and Infrastructure Solutions, May 29, 2020)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 10(B-2): Appendices to Hager-Rambo Flood Control Facilities Study Report: Appendices (Prepared by Wood Environment and Infrastructure Solutions, May 29, 2020)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 10(B-3): Hager-Rambo Flood Control Facilities Study Report: Drawings (Prepared by Wood Environment and Infrastructure Solutions, May 29, 2020)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 11: Downtown Burlington Traffic Overview (Prepared by CIMA+, October 2019)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 12: Downtown Burlington Micro-Level Traffic Operations: Review of the preferred Land Use Scenario (Prepared by CIMA+, May 1, 2020)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 13: Updated Area Servicing Plan (ASP) for Stormwater, Water and Wastewater: Downtown Burlington (Prepared by Wood Environment and Infrastructure Solutions, May 28, 2020)
- PL-16-20 Appendix 14: Fiscal Impact Analysis (To be prepared by Watson & Associates Economists Ltd and shared in July 2020) This document got moved back a month.
Appendix 15 of report PL-16-20 contains draft Downtown Burlington Placemaking and Urban Design Guidelines, to be prepared by SGL Planning & Design and released in July 2020.
Appendices 16-19 contain information about public engagement that informed the recommended modifications to the adopted Official Plan. This includes responses to feedback received.
Appendix 20 contains updates on other City projects, as of May 2020. This appendix may be further updated in September 2020.
Appendix 21 of report PL-16-20 will contain a project update that will be prepared and released in September 2020, in advance of the public meeting. This appendix will address all feedback received up until August 28, 2020.
Next Steps
The City will share two more documents – expected sometime in September:
- Financial Impact Analysis concerning the recommended policy modifications, and
- Draft Downtown Burlington Placemaking and Urban Design Guidelines for public review.
Aug. 28, 2020: Deadline to submit comments on the recommended modifications to the adopted Official Plan so the project team has time to consider the feedback in advance of the Sept. 30 Committee meeting.
Sept. 2020: The project team will release an additional appendix to the staff report PL-16-20 that was published in June. This appendix will provide project updates and a response to all feedback that was received prior to Aug. 28.
Sept. 30, 2020: City Council will consider all reports at a public meeting of the Community Planning, Regulation, and Mobility Committee on Sept. 30. This meeting will include a presentation from City staff and the project consultants. The public will have a chance to delegate.
Oct. 7, 2020: Council will consider the Sept. 30 recommendations at a Special Council meeting on Oct. 7. Council will decide whether to endorse the recommended policy modifications and submit them to Halton Region for inclusion in the Region’s approval of the new Official Plan that Council adopted in Apr. 2018.
The Gazette will now dive into the pile of documents and report on what it all means.
Stand By and Stay Tuned..
 By Staff
August 19th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
We are now in Stage 3 of the Emergency declared by the City and the Province.
The day those declarations were made everything shut down. Many thought it was going to be a short term thing – when the end of that first month came people began to realize the pandemic was going to really hurt many in the commercial sector.
We got to stage three almost a month ago – things didn’t immediately open up. It was slow, very slow for many.
Restaurants were permitted to offer service inside the premises and not just outside on a patio or under a tent.
The mask by law was extended to January 2021 – it was temporary when it was first passed.
Groups were limited to 5 people – that got expanded to 10.
Larger groups were permitted – up to 50 people, and movie theatres and bowling alleys were opened.
City hall was getting ready to have some people back at their desks.
The situation with schools is close to chaotic with different boards of education taking different approaches.
Where is the general public in all this?
A survey done in June on public anxiety, which is growing and any possible opening up of the border with the United States revealed that public sentiment falls into five unique groups
20% Ready to Go – less likely to wear masks or follow rules
19% Nearly Ready – watch data from Govt & Health
23% Want to, But Can’t – some barriers – money, child care etc.
18% Content – OK staying and working at home
20% Afraid – want to see control and penalties, think situation is worse, lack of trust
What can Businesses do to help build that trust and bring about a change in public trust and bring them into the commercial world?
 This decal is available to every restaurant in the country. They just have to sign up to the promise. Look for it – ask why it isn’t there if you don’t see it. Model the right behaviour – masks and social distancing: this is not a celebration, demonstrate caution
Provide Credible information and validate safety (Post Promise)
Visual is best – show experience rather than tell – videos/tours
Tone – enforcement, education, help, diligent follow-up.
The hospitality sector, which took the hardest hit during the lockdown is slowly coming back – the emphasis is on the slowly part.
Public confidence isn’t as high as it needs to be. Have you seen the POST promise in the restaurants and bars you go to?
By Pepper Parr
August 19th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
 The trustees have been in this private session for at least more than an hour. The Halton District School Board has been in a private session for well over an hour.
Not healthy.
Parents want information.
The Board administration has most of the information and will put forward proposals for opening up the schools in September.
The conversations and debate taking place behind closed doors is conversations and debate that should be public.
By Michele Bogle
August 19th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Over the next few weeks I will be sharing the opinions and concerns of a group of Burlington parents in an on-going series of articles. While you read this and the other parts to this series, I ask, “Do you share these same concerns? Would you like your voice heard?” Chime in, discuss, share; give those making decisions on your behalf another opportunity to hear you.
To start, all three of my children have attended the public school system in Burlington, elementary through high school. They are now at college or university or have moved on into the world of commerce.
 How many of these desks will be filled in September? There are so many aspects of the move back into the classroom to discuss. Let’s meet the wonderful parents who connected with me through various Burlington Facebook groups to offer their thoughts, concerns and questions. We’ll dig deeper into this subject over the next few weeks. Here are just some of the issues that you may not have thought about.
The names of the people cooperating with me are not real, I have chosen to use aliases for all of them; but let me assure you – they are very real people.
Mary Sawyer and her husband work full time outside their home and have two elementary aged children. With the uncertainty of how successful the entrance back to school is, she wishes that the HDSB allowed for the option to have her children start in Sept, but then opt for Oct – March remote learning as Hamilton schools have this option. Why are the boards not sharing the same models?
Kathy Duncan is a special education teacher who wants to know what the government plans to do for these students. Discussion about children with special needs have been largely left out of any guidelines thus far. Virtual classrooms would be near impossible to coordinate as well as impractical.
 Burlington Transit Youth Ambassadors gather in a bus shelter. Front row: Yas Benoit, Shaan, Billi and Harrison. Back row, BT’s Sandra Maxwell, YA Kayla and Burlington Green advisor Kale Black. Will they be able to take on tasks like this during the school year? Sandra Parker, a Burlington high school teacher and mother of two high school students would really like a decision made with regard to which of the three presented teaching options to prepare for with just three weeks left before the start of school. Currently the plan is for two cohorts with rotating period classes or, two subjects a day for five weeks then on to the next subject. This would provide the students with a more in depth understanding of the material without interruption. The third option would be homeschooling.
Jeremy and Talia Unger are parents to two children, grades 5 and 8. They will be signing the ‘Intent to Return’ form for their kids. One of their concerns is about the mental well-being of their children. “Socialization is a critical part of their development. Not being able to see their friends, in person, at any time during the day can be distracting as well as distressing.” Safety is of course their first priority.
Susan Grimsby teaches elementary aged kids. While she’s eager to return to class, she has definite concerns about the precautions in place. Who’s policing the policies within the school grounds? In maintaining distance between students, how much anxiety is being created?
 The emotional health and well being of students at every level is a real concern. Will it get the attention it needs? Theresa Fisk is an EA with one child in high school and another in elementary school. She is concerned with the management of the cohorts and identified a handful of opportunities for expanding cohorts. There are special needs children who also use the before-and-after school program. Due to the shortage of classrooms, many of the same rooms will be used in the course of the day. In the morning, regular class begins the moment after the before-school-program kids leave the room, leaving the classroom unsanitized for the next group.
During the after-school sessions, when there is only a handful of one age group left in one of the rooms, they condense the kids into fewer rooms, thus creating another mixed cohort. The duration of time that students are on the school bus is typically 45 minutes with poor air circulation. Theresa would love to have a staggered entry, giving time for sanitation. As well for the grade 1-3 children to wear masks.
 Are outdoor classes a possibility? Maria Vanelli is also an elementary school teacher and speaks out about the $50 million provided to improve air quality, better ventilation in the classrooms. Maria tells me that the idea comes too late to implement in time. Her husband is a contractor and from first-hand experience informs her that the HVAC systems take six months to order, then add installation time.
Library Information Technician, Carmen White touched on, among many other items, the math. If class sizes are to be cut in half to allow for safer student numbers such as 15 per class, the reserve fund doesn’t adequately cover the number of teachers needed. Even with funding in place, space is still an immutable variable.
Each of these sets of parents and educators have concerns about very different pieces of this problem impacted by regional policies from the HDSB. Provinces are beginning to change their ideas through pressure from administrators, educators and the public. One thing everyone agreed on is that the answer isn’t to stay home, nor is it safe enough for their kids to return to school yet.
I’d love to hear your thoughts on going back to the classroom. You can reach me by email – bogle@bgzt.ca
 Michele Bogle is a Burlington resident who writes for the Gazette on community issues. She has written several children’s books for ages 4-12, which can be found under the pseudonym, ‘Cameron S. Matthews’. Michele received her education in journalism from the University of Pennsylvania.
 By Pepper Parr
August 19th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The front line people are the people that really get it.
It’s in front of them every hour of every day.
A lot of those front line people are volunteers – that is what community and serving is really all about.
Robin Bailey, Executive Director of the Burlington Food Bank is participating in the annual Feed Ontario conference which will happen this week online in a virtual format. Today’s course is about “Getting Ready for the 2nd Wave”.
 Beth Martin Snook – Burlington Together Beth Martin Snook from Burlington Together made some comments earlier this week that bear repeating.
“As we head into September and beyond, let’s keep in mind that Covid-19, like the common cold, is operating solely in its best interest.
 Corona virus: They are really good at spreading. “Corona viruses are really, really good at what they do, which is: spreading.
“We WILL see new cases as schools reopen, it WILL spread. This isn’t a moral failing on anyone’s part. It’s just a virus, doing what it does best.
“Our best defenses continue to be hand washing, social distancing, masking, and supporting each other through what continues to be an extremely stressful moment in time.
“We may very well see a second wave, and if we do, we will be here to support the Burlington community and provide reliable resources.
“The Burlington Food Bank IS and WILL be ready to support our community.
“If you are in need or know of someone who could use our help PLEASE have them email us at info@burlingtonfoodbank.ca or call 905-637-2273 to make arrangements to have food dropped at their door or they can now pick it up. If you live in Burlington, we are here to help.”
Grow to Give –
Grow a row
About the Burlington Food Bank –
Donate –
By Pepper Parr
August 19th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
It was the best ZOOM production we’ve seen since the lock down.
 Michelle Dwyer handled the flow of questions exceptionally well. There may be a future for her in professional broadcasting. Michelle Dwyer served as the moderator who took the calls during a virtual information meeting about the close-to-final report from the Taking a Closer Look at the Downtown event which she passed on to the team on the other side of the panel that included Alison Enns, Thomas Douglas and Jenna Pulato.
It ran smoothly, a truly professional production. The people who run the city web casts – especially the Standing Committee programs, could learn something from this team.
Dwyer would have looked even better if the camera had been adjusted just a little.
Each of the participants was working from home (Dwyer might have been working out of city hall) and were able to move from person to person without any glitches.
They were doing a virtual information meeting on one of the final Get Involved Burlington segments that was focused on the Scoped Reexamination of the Adopted Official Plan for the Downtown.
By way of background – the 2014-18 city council approved a new Official Plan that was sent to the Region where it had to be approved. The Region sent it back saying there were parts of the Plan that didn’t fit with the Regional Official Plan – they needed some fixes.
That notice from the Region came in after the 2018 election which brought a lot of new faces to the council table and a Mayor who saw the development of the downtown core a lot differently than her predecessor.
In its notice to the city about the Official Plan that it was sending back, the Region said the city could look at other elements of the Plan and not just the four the Region had been specific about.
That gave Mayor Meed Ward the room she needed to take a deeper look at what could be done with the downtown core.
 Mary Lou Tanner, former Burlington Director of Planning The city now had a new Director of Planning: Mayor Meed Ward did not get along with Mary Lou Tanner who was directing and defending what the 2014-18 Council had approved.
Mayor Meed Ward sent City Manager James Ridge packing and brought in Tim Commisso in as an interim City Manager who quickly became the choice of new full time city manager.
Most of the players had changed – which got the city to the point where the Scoped Reexamination of the Adopted Official Plan become almost a cottage industry in itself. The Director of Planning was given carte blanche to hire a consulting firm to lead the Review. They were thorough – and they weren’t cheap.
Heather MacDonald, the new director of planning, was given permission to do a sole source search – she hired SGL Planning and Design who began a process that produced literally dozens of reports with two more to come.
 Alison Enns, part of the panel that took questions from the public on a virtual information meeting, worked very smoothy with Thomas Douglas on the ZOOM presentation  Thomas handled most of the question related to transportation at the virtual information meeting. The FINAL report with some surprising recommendations wasn’t available to the public until a few days before the live review; despite that many of the questions were very detailed – members of the public had drilled down and done their home work.
A transcript of the broadcast, as well as the broadcast itself is expected to be available “shortly” Both will be posted to the Get Involved section of the city web site.
Planning staff have asked for comments before August 28th. The report will go to a Standing Committee September 30th and to Council in October.
If the report makes it through each of these steps, and doesn’t get bogged down with an appeal before it goes to the Region, it could become the law of the land before the end of the year.
It will have been a long, tortuous and expensive trip.
By Pepper Parr
August 18th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The Halton District School Board is planning on holding a virtual Town Hall meeting to bring parents up to date on September school opening.
 The intention was to hold the event Thursday or Friday of this week but HDSB officials said “we just don’t have enough information from the Ministry and hope to do the Town Hall virtually next week.”
In a telling quote, an Official who asked not to be identified said: “The sands are shifting.”
School Boards across the province have been struggling to deliver on the directions the province has given them.
Parents are not happy with the options they have, school boards have found that they are not getting the opportunity to use the resources they have to deal with the challenge they face.
They were told just days ago that they can tap into their financial reserves; HDSB has $40 million that they need government permission to spend. They have been given permission to spend $6 million on PPE.
 By Pepper Parr
August 17th 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
The Recreation Services Redesign plan for the fall to slowly reopen more recreational facilities including rinks and indoor pools to increase the number of recreational programming, activities and rentals available to Burlington residents was approved by City Council lasty Thursday at a Special Meeting.
Earlier in the day a Standing Committee heard delegations from a number of people who outlined the impact the COVID-19 rules were having on the private facilities sector of the sports community.
 Coach Dave Coach Dave, taught Councillor Nisan enough to get him to the point where he was a respected athlete during his high school days. Councillor Kearns was listening carefully while Coach Dave delegated and then spoke up and said: “So you’re the Coach Dave my kids talk about. “Who are your kids asked the coach? “That will be a conversation for another time” said Kearns
 “That will be a conversation for another time” At that point all Coach Dave needed was one more supporter and he could have gotten almost anything he asked for. Councillor Galbraith, who runs a fitness club piped in and said he fully understood the financial pressure on the private facility locations.
City Council approved a rental rate reduction of 25 per cent and added more funds to support Recreation Fee Assistance.
The rental rate reduction will help off-set the reduced revenue recreation providers are experiencing due to smaller group sizes, cleaning and additional costs associated with COVID-19.
Recreation Fee Assistance
Recreation is for all, regardless of financial situation. Recreation Fee Assistance is funding made available to resident individuals or families who need help to pay for City of Burlington recreation programs.
For more information or to apply see burlington.ca/feeassistance. You can also leave a confidential voicemail message at 905-335-7738, ext. 8501 and staff will return your call to assist you.
Arenas and Indoor Pools
Some indoor pools and rinks will open for fall programs and rentals.
Indoor pools opening will include Angela Coughlan and Centennial Pool. Nelson Pool, weather permitting, will stay open until Thanksgiving, Oct. 12, 2020.
Central Arena is open. Appleby Arena ice pads 3 and 4 will open soon. Other arenas will open once demand for ice rentals reach 40-60 hours per week at each arena.
Stay tuned for recreational skating programs to resume later this fall.
 By Staff
August 17th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Access to online payments for business licence renewals and property information requests currently unavailable
Online payment for the following online services is currently unavailable. Thank you for your understanding as we work to get this option back online as soon as possible.
• Business licence renewals
• Property information requests
 By Pepper Parr
August 17th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
 Director of Education for the Halton District School Board (HDSB), Stuart Miller The Director of Education for the Halton District School Board (HDSB), Stuart Miller, is hunkered down with his staff at the Education Centre on Guelph Line in Burlington, taking part in a meeting that has them all in the same large room.
This is a group that will be very strict in the way people in the room social distance and wear masks.
They are there to figure out how they can handle the opening of the schools on September 8th.
It is not going to be an easy task.
The province has set out requirements that many feel are just plain wrong – but school boards have to do what the Ministry tells them to do.
The government wants students back in classroom and has directed that elementary schools operate just the way they did before the schools were closed in March.
Secondary students will spend some time in a classroom and some time working from their homes being taught synchronically by their teacher who will be in the school.
Last week the Board of Education sent a note to every parent asking what they planned to do with their children: were they going to have them attend classes or were they going to keep them at home?
As of last Thursday just over 50% of the parents had responded. The responses were supposed to have been returned by last Friday – that deadline has been extended.
 When parents have questions they show up in droves with their hands in the air. This parents meeting took place at Aldershot High school when the iStem program was announced. Directors of Education across the province are close to being totally fed up by the way the Ministry of Education is handling the delivery of education to students.
Of the 50% that did respond 81% of the parents of elementary students said they would return; 86% of the secondary parents said their children would return.
There are roughly 45,000 elementary school students being taught by the HDSB and roughly 19,000 secondary students.
The 50% of the parents that answered the survey as soon as they got it were pretty sure as to what they wanted to do – it is reasonable to assume that the other 50% were not certain.
If you do the math – you get a sense as to the size of the problem the HDSB administration is up against.
To get some sense as to what teachers are going to have to deal with. There are elementary schools in the system that have enrollments of 1200 students – Oakville and Milton have elementary schools that big.
 Superintendent Terri Blackwell has led the development of the program for secondary school students during the pandemic.  Scott Podrebarac has led the program for elementary school students. Both Podrebarac and Blackwell are supported by a team of senior people How does one keep the required control over 1,200 students – ensuring that they are wearing masks; ensuring that they stay within their cohort, ensuring that they don’t mix with students from other cohorts?
The HDSB has had a schedule of the condition of the HVAC systems in every school in the Region.
More than four months ago HDSB asked for permission to use some of the $40 million in the Board’s Reserve Fund account to upgrade the HVAC systems. They didn’t get a response; they were told that they could allocate $6 million from the reserve fund account to purchase the PPE supplies that would be needed.
Some school Boards, Toronto in particular, are pushing the province to permit staggered classroom openings. Nothing positive yet from the province.
The Province also said that 500 nurses were going to be hired and made available to the school districts. Nothing yet on who will be overseeing those nurses and how they will interact with the individual schools.
Will those nurses be assigned to specific schools or will they be assigned to the Public Health unit they are within?
What will a school do if they find they have an infected student? Close the class and send everyone home for 14 days or shutdown the whole school?
How will busing students to school be handled? Will there be enough drivers?
Miller expects today’s meeting to last all day and points out that most of his staff have worked every weekend since the lockdown took place in March. “This is a tremendous administrative task” adding that “there are more questions than answers – we are going to have to make things up on a daily basis. It is going to be a challenge.”
The trustees will meet for a virtual meeting on Wednesday.
By Staff
August 17th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Thousands of people in this city know what it is like to take a pleasant walk along the pathways in the Beach part of the city.
 A walk in the country – a seven minute drive from city hall The picture on the right of the pathway is what makes a walk such a pleasure.
We know that city staff are stretched – too much work to be done and not enough people on staff to get it all done.
The citizens of the city often use the Gazette to bring some of the problems to the attention of city hall .
 Rubbish on the walking trail. Send in the clean up crew. There is one, isn’t there? There is an unsightly pile of rubbish along the Beachway trail.
Who do you call? The Mayor? She is swamped. The City Manager? He is swamped as well. Maybe the head of the city’s communications group. We will forward this to him and see if anything gets done.
Would someone do whatever has to be done to get it cleaned up?
By Pepper Parr
August 16, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
From out of the blue – a few words from Bryana Cosgrove:
“Guess what’s NOT cancelled this year…not even COVID can stop something as wonderful as the Terry Fox run! But, the format is a little different. There are at least 2 ways for you to participate:
 Recognize this ankle ? You should. 1. For all you cyclists out there, there is a 40th anniversary event happening on Aug 22nd where you can ride your favourite route to contribute to the collective goal of cycling 40,000kms (the circumference of the world) on that one day. If you’re interested, DM me for details on how to register and log your kms!
 Some things never die – they aren’t supposed to. 2. Team Casey will be creating our own fun event you can complete individually or in teams of people within your COVID bubble. This event can be done on your own time and in your own way…details to follow!
Through Casey’s 7 year battle with late stage lung cancer, he bounced between various treatments, but the most successful treatment was a clinical trial for a drug that was partly funded by research dollars raised by the Terry Fox Foundation. This drug gave Casey an additional wonderful three years with his friends and family, and for that we are forever grateful. Please help me pay it forward for others by supporting Team Casey.
Click the link below to become part of our team or to donate
To donate under a specific team member just click on their name on the team page.
The web site is HERE
 By Pepper Parr
August 16th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
Summer in the city on a quiet Sunday
Whatever heat there is going to be hasn’t arrived yet.
The streets are quiet. Groups gather around the strip malls.
In the downtown core there is a place where the traffic builds – the Centro Market that is tucked in behind the store on Brant Street – accessed off John Street.
 Social distancing limits the number of people who can actually shop – a decent line up, seen on the right, with people waiting for their turn. Life when there is a pandemic hovering over us like a huge dark cloud changes much of what we do.
 People line up, waiting for their turn to enter the market while a guitarist plucks at the strings. At the market it means standing in line – six feet apart, properly masked waiting for someone in the parking lot doing their shopping to leave so that the next person in line can go in.
There is a quiet casualness to it all. A musician plays a guitar quietly.
 The back hoe rests – waiting for the construction workers to return on Monday. Yards to the south of the market there is a massive back hoe parked for the weekend – waiting for construction workers to show up on Monday to continue with the excavation of the site that will see The Gallery, a 24 story development that will, when completed, change not only the look but also the feel of the downtown core.
Just to the north of the market – the Bentley, another condominium takes its place. As high as it is – it doesn’t feel as if the building is looming over the street even though it is flush with the side walk.
None of it seems to change the feel of the market in a parking lot.
 Produce is set out on table on on the tail gates of vehicles. What is missing is a spot where one can sit at a table with a checkered table cloth drinking good coffee, perhaps a double espresso and a croissant.
Can one hope?
 By Pepper Parr
August 15th, 2020
BURLINGTON, ON
City Council ended a long work day on Thursday – starting at 9:30 am and adjourning at just after 10 pm that night.
They started out as a Standing Committee, rolled it over into a Meeting of Council and passed a number of significant bylaws.
There was an interesting debate on plans to create a Registry within which members of Council would let the public know who they have been meeting with.
Politicians at every level don’t particularly like Registry’s. Ward 2 Councillor Lisa Kearns has had one in place for some time. She brought forward a Motion asking that there be a Registry that included every member of Council
During the debate Mayor Marianne Meed Ward said she has had a Register since the day she became Mayor.
 Transparency was Meed Ward’s operative word before she was even elected to office. That was a surprise to me – it was something I had never heard of before. With Mayor Meed Ward everything she does that is new and different is mentioned often. She sees and positions herself as a politician who is going to do things differently. She used the words accountability and transparency every time she delegated at Council as a citizen.
The Gazette reached out to the Mayor’s Communication staffer. Got a message that he was working from home. Our message to the Communications Staffer was:
At the Standing Committee last night the Mayor said that she keeps a record of everyone she meets with along with minutes of the meeting and that that information is publicly available.
Can you tell me where that information is located?
Thank you
Shortly after we got an email from Suzanne Vukosavljevic, Manager of Communications, City Manager’s Office. We did not reach out to Vukosavljevic – she appears to have been advised by the Mayor’s Communications Staffer that the Gazette was asking questions.
She responded:
 Marianne Meed Ward after being sworn in as Mayor of Burlington The Mayor’s Office maintains a record of meetings with developers, with minutes. They are not online but, as stated, available to the public upon request and can forward.
We responded asking for a link to the information.
Vukosavljevic replied:
Good afternoon Pepper,
The Mayor’s Office maintains a record of meetings with developers, with minutes. If there is interest in a particular meeting, we can forward those minutes. The only meetings that have taken place this year have been:
- Clearview – Adam Peaker, June 29
- Millcroft Golf Course – Frank Bon, Feb 6
Thanks, Suzanne
That is not quite good enough. Where are the records? Written up in a little black book? Are they in a place where they can be accessed by people in the Mayor’s Office and changed?
During the debate the Mayor said the information was public and that it was online.
That isn’t the case. It certainly isn’t transparent.
Politicians are judged by what they do – not what they say.
We applaud the Mayor recording her meetings and keeping minutes.
We would like to see the complete record of every meeting along with the minutes. The public has a right to see everything not just what City Hall functionaries decide to make available.
In a conversation with a former Mayor of the City he said that anyone who wants to do something in the City meets with the Mayor. “It all comes through the Mayor’s office” he said.
Of course it does and the Gazette wants a mayor who preaches accountability and transparency to practice what she preaches.
Salt with Pepper is the musings, reflections and opinions of the publisher of the Burlington Gazette, an online newspaper that was formed in 2010 and is a member of the National Newsmedia Council.
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